Elastic-fluid turbine.



W. J. A. LONDONu ELASTIC FLUID TURBINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 8, 1907.

a htented Dec. 14, 1909.

[NVE/VTOR.

TORNEY 1N F2107.

I VITNESSES:

I passages and cause the WILLIAM J. A. LONDON,

WESTINGHOUSE MACHINE COMPANY,

OF EDGEWOOD PARK, IE

ENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE.

Application filed August 8,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, /VILLIAM J. A. LON- noN, a subject of the King of Great Britain, and a resident of Edgewood Park, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have made a new and useful Invention in Elastic-FluidTurbines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to elastic fluid turbines and more particularly to marine and other turbines in which the 'rotor elements are subjected to longitudinal thrusts other than those'due to pressure of the motive fluid in traversing the working passages of the turbine.

An object of this invention is the production of simple means for counter-balancing any longitudinal thrust on the turbinerotor. My invention broadly consists in provid ing a turbine wit-h a shiftable rotor, and so constructing the motive fluid passages of the turbine that an external or unbalanced fluid pressure thrust on the rotor will Vary the distribution of motive fluid to the working pressure of the motive fluid within the working passages of the! turbine to preponderate in one direction and counter-balance the external or unbalanced j fluid pressure thrust. i

In the drawings accompanying this api plication and forming a part thereof, I have shown a partial section of a turbine embodying my invention, but I do not wish it to be understood that I limit myself to the construction shown or to the type of turbine illustrated.

The turbine illustrated comprises a rotor element 2, which is journaled in suitable bearings, (not shown) and a casing 3 which surroumls the rotor and which is provided with motive fluid admission and exhaust ports. (not shown). The turbine ot' the type iniown as semi-double tar and is divided into three stages --a primary stage 4-, through which the thud {lows in one axial direction, in lirii intermediate s' y '1 motive; :iuid tron: the M a1 1 through which the iii; in opposite axial iii'eitii ns, and divided iinai or low pres ure sir (lClYLc. inoiive fluid from separate ilze iutei'niediu stage and throi the liuid iiows i with i to the turbine ill.

The primary stage l t l Specification of Letters Patent.

1907. Serial No. 387,662.

moving blades 6 mounted Patented Dec. 14, 1909.

on a wheel 7,

which is secured to and forms a part of the rotor, an intermediate row of stationary directing vanes 8 mounted on the turbine casing and cooperating with the moving blades and in the turbine casing tive fluid to the first,

one or more nozzles 9, which are located and which deliver morow of blades 6. The

nozzles 9 receive motive fluid from a chamber 10, formed in tl communicating with the turbine, which,

1e turbine casing and the admission port of as is customary, is controlled by a valve automatically actuated by a speed responsive i The nozzles 9 expand determined amount without iurther ergy rendered pension.

and the blades 6 v expansion the velocity enavallable by the nozzle exdevice, (not the motive fluid a preabstract The lllOiJiVG fluid discharged from the final row of blades of the primary stage is received by a chamber 11,, which is located between the turbine casing and Wheel 7 and which communicates tion 12 of the intermediate stage.

directly with a sec- The chamber 11 also communicates with a section 13 ot' the interm of a chamber side of the wheel and fluid pfLSStlgGSltl the casing adjacent t chambers 11 and let each other by means extend through the Each section of t] comprises a plurality moving blades respectively on the turbine and uda the motive fluid velocity energy The final and lb, which with the sections 'iliale stage and which stage. are provided and by 'mury' stage ahsti the 14, -formed "acted by impulse or urtner expansion. ust on the rotor ediate stage by means casing, which are located 111 o the nozzles 9. The

also communicate with of openings 16, which wheel 7 ie intermediate stage of alternate rows of and stationary vanes mounted rotor and easing of the pied to tractionally expand abstract the available impact and reaction.

stage is divided into sections 17 communicate respectively 12 and 13 ot the intermelike the intermed ate with altrnate annular moving blades amistationary vanes.

imposes no longitudion the turbine rotor, since the ianded by the nozzles adetermined amount and the impact The longitudiof the motive fluid intermediate stage is shown) between the other 7 and the turbine balanced by the equal and opposite thrust of the motive fluid in the other ,section and the longitudinal thrust on the rotor of one section of the low pressure stage is counterbalanced by the equal and opposite thrust of the other section of the sta e. Consequently, the turbine is balanced tor all loads and steam pressures.

In order that I may balance external thrusts on the rotor, such, for instance, as the thrust occasioned on the rotor of a marine turbine by the propeller, or the thrust of the impeller of a centrifugal pump or compressor directly connected to the operating turbine, I automaticall control the distribution of motive flui to the bilaterally symmetrical ortions of the turbine, so that the fluid pressure will preponderate in one direction and induce a thrust on the turbine which is equal and opposite to the thrust imposed by the external disturbing force. I accomplish this by pro- ,portioning the cross-sectional areas of the admission passages to the separate sections of the intermediatestage, and by providing the turbine with a shiftable rotor which will, by shifting in response to an unbalanced ,thrust, vary the effective areas of one or the other of the admission passages.

The admission passage 19 to the section 12 of the intermediate stage is, under normal conditions, equal to the free area of the fluid passage through the first row of stationary vanes of the section and communicates directly with the chamber 11. The admission passage 20 to the section 13 is equal in cross-sectional area to the free area or the fluid passage through the first row of stationary vanes of the section 13 and communicates directly with the chamber 14. These passages are vformed between the easing and the wheel 7 of the rotor and are so located that anytlongitudinal movement of the rotor increases or decreases the areas of one or the other of the passages. With such an arrangement a thrust on the rotor that will shift it in a direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1 will decrease the area of the passage 19 and consequently decrease the amount of steam delivered to the section 12 of the intermediate stage and section 17 of the final stage. The amount of fluid delivered to the section l3'of the intermediate stage of the section 18 of the final stage will be unchanged and consequently the pressure within the fluid passages of the turbine will preponderate in a. direction opposite to that indicated by the arrow and opposite to the external or disturbing thrust encountered by the rotor. The turbine rotor will adjustitselt until the area of the passage 19 is such that the preponderating steam pressure will just balance the disturbing force. The rotor is capable of shifting in either direction and will crmsequeutly move under any unbalanced thrust until the rotor is restored to longitudinal equilibrium.

The shifting of the rotor and consequently the throttlingof the motive fluid elivered to one half of the intermediate and final stages of the turbine will cut down the effective su ply of fluid flowing through the turbine an will consequently tend to reduce the power delivered by the turbine. This tendency will, however, be overcome by thev speed responsive device, which will operate the delivery valve to admit more motive fluid to the turbine. When the turbine is relieved of the external thrust, the preponderating fluid pressure within the bi-laterally symmetrical portions of the turbine will move the rotor to the normal or central position and the flow of motive fluid delivered to each side of the bi-laterally symmetrical portion will be equalized. The turbine will automatically control the distribution of fluid so that the preponderating pressure will just counterbalance any lon tudinal thrust and consequently the or inary thrust hearings will be unnecessary.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that a turbine constructed in accordance with my invention may be designed to counter-balance any end thrust whatever, either external or resulting from fluid pressure within the working passages of the turbine, and, moreover, it will be apparent that a single flow turbine may be designed and constructed which will automatically bal-. ance the longitudinal thrust on the turbine and which will be included within the scope of my invention.

What I claim is:

1. In combination with an elastic fluid -a rotor element shiftable longitudinally of the turbine and adapted to proportion the delivery of motive fluid to said sections.

4. In an elastic fluid turbine, in combination with the rotor, a working stage and a thrust relieving device for said stage and means, dependent on the rotor, for varying the axial thrust of said stage and causing the thrust of said relieving device to preponderatc.

5. In an elasticffluid turbine, in combination with a rotor capable of shifting longitudinally in its bearings, a working stage, a thrust relieving device for said stage and means, dependent onisald rotor, for thrott lting the supply of motive fiuid to said stage and causing the axial thrust of said relieving device to preponderate.

t. In an elastic fluid turbine, in combination With a rotor capable of shifting longitudinally through its bearings, a Working stage, an' agent for counter-balancing the axial thrust of said stage and means, dependent on the rotor, for throttling the supply of motive fluid to said stage and causing the axial thrust of said agent to preponderate. 7. In combination with the two sections of a double flow turbine, a motor element adapted to vary the amount of motive fluid delivered to one section of the turbine independently of the amount delivered to the other section.

8. In an elastic fluid turbine, a rotor capable of shifting longitudinally through its bearings, a divided stage through which the fluid flows 1n opposite directions and means, including said rotor, for varying the amount of fluid delivered to one section of said stage independently of the amount delip'ered to the other stage.

9. In an elastic fluid turbine, a working stage, a thrust relieving device and means, dependent on the thrust imposed on the rotor of the turbine for varying the amount of motive fluid delivered to said stage.

10. In an elastic fluid turbine, a Working stage, means for balancing the inherent axial thrust of said" stage by fluld pressure and means dependent on the axial thrust encountered for decreasing the amount of motive fluid delivered to said stage and thereby causing the balancing means to ex ert a preponderating thrust on the rotor of said turbine.

11. In an elastic fluid turbine, in combination With the rotor, a Working stage and an agent for counter-balancing the axial thrust occasioned by the motive fluid traversing the Working passages of said stage and means dependent on the axial thrust encountered for causing the thrust-of said stage to vary independently of the thrust of said agent.

12. In an elastic fluid turbine, in combination with the rotor, aworking stage and a thrust relieving device for said stage, and means dependent on the axial thrust encountered for decreasing the axial thrust of said stage and causing the thrust of said relieving device to preponderate.

13. In an elastic fluid turbine, a divided stage through which the fluid flows in opposite directions, and means dependent on the axial thrust encountered for varying the amount of fluid delivered to one portion of said stage independently of the amount delivered to the other portion of said stage.

14. In an elastic fluid turbine, a plurality of Working stages and means Within the turbine and controlled by the rotors of the turbine for varying the amount of motive fluid delivered to one or another of said stages.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 6th day of August,

WILLIAM J. A. LONDON. Witnesses:

CHARLES W. MoGHEn, R. P. MCINTYRE. 

